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Bindi Irwin said she had surgery for endometriosis after 10 years of fatigue, pain, and nausea.
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The TV personality and conservationist said her treatment included the removal of 37 lesions.
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Endometriosis is common but widely misdiagnosed, and can lead to pain and infertility.
Bindi Irwin is opening up about her endometriosis diagnosis and treatment in an effort to help other women with the stigmatized disease, she wrote on Instagram Tuesday.
Iwrin, the 24-year-old TV personality and daughter of the late conservationist Steve Irwin, said that she struggled with “insurmountable fatigue, pain & nausea” for a decade, but multiple tests, doctor’s visits, and scans didn’t yield satisfying answers.
“A doctor told me it was simply something you deal with as a woman & I gave up entirely, trying to function through the pain,” Irwin wrote in her post.
Endometriosis is widely misdiagnosed
Endometriosis occurs when tissue similar to the uterine lining grows outside of the uterus, like in the ovaries, fallopian tubes, and pelvic lining, the Mayo Clinic says. The tissue thickens and bleeds with each month’s menstrual cycle, but becomes trapped, which can lead to pain and complications including infertility.
Endometriosis affects about 1 in 10 American women, but research has shown most women wait an average of 8.6 years to be appropriately diagnosed.
The same study also showed that over three-fourths of patients say they’ve been misdiagnosed with another physical problem, and about half are misdiagnosed with a mental health problem.
Surgery can help some patients with endometriosis
There’s no cure for endometriosis, but surgery can remove lesions and other treatments like oral contraceptives, diet and exercise, and painkillers can help manage symptoms, according to the Endometriosis Foundation of America.
Irwin credited her friend, influencer and endometriosis advocate Leslie Mosier, with setting her “on a path of regaining my life.”
While it’s unclear exactly how or when Irwin was diagnosed with the condition, she said she decided to undergo surgery because she couldn’t continue living like she was. “Every part of my life was getting torn apart because of the pain,” Irwin wrote.
Irwin said that surgeons found 37 lesions, some of which were “very deep & difficult to remove,” and a chocolate cyst, or a cyst filled with menstrual blood, per the Cleveland Clinic.
“Validation for years of pain is indescribable,” Irwin wrote.
Insider has previously written about other women who have had their endometriosis pain ignored by doctors. One woman from Scotland had a 28-pound chocolate cyst removed after doctors previously dismissed her symptoms as weight gain.
Irwin hopes her story helps other women realize they deserve help
In her Instagram post, Irwin attributed unanswered messages and cancelled plans to prioritizing her remaining energy toward her family, including her almost-2-year-old daughter.
“Please be gentle & pause before asking me (or any woman) when we’ll be having more children. After all that my body has gone through, I feel tremendously grateful that we have our gorgeous daughter,” she said. “She feels like our family’s miracle.”
Irwin also said she wants her post to be validation for others that their pain is real and that they deserve help. “Keep searching for answers,” she said.
Read the original article on Insider
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